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The form finding of tensile membranes - a tool for architects and designers

THE FORM FINDING OF TENSILE MEMBRANES:
A TOOL FOR ARCHITECTS AND DESIGNERS
by
Kavita Rodrigues
A Thesis Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
MASTER OF BUILDING SCIENCE
August 2008
Copyright 2008 Kavita Rodrigues

Lightweight structures have complex forms and are difficult to visualize and translate into two-dimensional drawings. The stability and stiffness of such structures depends on the desired boundaries and internal tension. Their precise shape depends on various factors such as the material used and its properties, its pretension, curvature, and modulus of elasticity.; A useful tool for architects would be a program to generate a mesh for the membrane. The program would compute the form using variable parameters and run a schematic structural analysis to test the intended structural performance under both vertical and lateral loading. The third phase of the program would generate a cutting pattern for the material.; The program, called 'Form Finder' was created in 2004 using Visual Basic 6.0. The tool successfully accepted 3D geometry as input, along with edge conditions and material data and provided the resulting 3D shape and a file containing the resulting stresses.

THE FORM FINDING OF TENSILE MEMBRANES:
A TOOL FOR ARCHITECTS AND DESIGNERS
by
Kavita Rodrigues
A Thesis Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
MASTER OF BUILDING SCIENCE
August 2008
Copyright 2008 Kavita Rodrigues